Disenchanted with Escudero

"Among the leading political personalities of Bicolandia, he appears to be the one who could most closely approximate the stature of the late Senator Raul S. Roco. He is young, intelligent, articulate, possessed of a fairly dynamic personality. Being a lawyer, is also well acquainted with the intricacies of legislation.

"He also carries a name that is respected not only in his home province but in the entire Bicol region. In his three terms as congressman, he has earned the respect and admiration not only of his colleagues, but also of many other people in and out of Congress. If the 2007 elections are held next year as scheduled and he runs for the Senate, there is every reason to expect that he could come out among the top five winners."

These words of praise were said of Rep. Francis "Chiz" Joseph Escudero of the First District of Sorsogon. They come from a fellow Sorsogueño who, although he has stayed in Manila for some 50 years now, has been keeping in touch with the developments in his home province.

The man is Nilo B. Barberan, a veteran advertising and public relations practitioner. In the close to 40 years that he has been in the field of communications that included editing two community newspapers, Barberan has helped formulate and implement political strategies for candidates in both the local and national levels. He also served as public affairs and public relations consultant for a CPA-lawyer friend and former congressman of Camarines Sur, staying for extended periods in Naga City.

Barberan says he has closely followed the career of Congressman Escudero and remembers having proudly proclaimed to his office mates in May 2004 that he comes from the same province as that of the Bicolano solon.

That was during the time Escudero engaged in a spirited tussle with then Congressman and now Solicitor General Eduardo Nachura during the canvassing in the Senate of the votes for presidential candidates.

But now, Barberan confesses to having been deeply disappointed at the way Escudero’s political career is turning out. He says his disenchantment actually started when the Sorsogon solon backed the presidential candidacy of the late Fernando Poe Jr., even serving as the late actor’s campaign spokesman.

The Bicolanos, Barberan said, were expecting him to support the presidential bid of the late Senator Roco. They could not understand why he turned his back on a fellow Bicolano who, they felt, was much more qualified and much more experienced in governance compared to the famous actor who had absolutely nothing to show in so far as pubic administration is concerned.

His disenchantment with Escudero grew over the succeeding two years, he said, and cites recent events that added to his frustrations.

"The controversy surrounding La Fayette’s mining activities in Rapu-Rapu, Albay just across Sorsogon was all over the media for months. Allegations about mercury poisoning supposedly caused by the mine, generated a fish scare that affected the livelihood of Sorsogon fishermen. The panel that President Arroyo formed to look into the controversy was even headed by the Bishop of Sorsogon. I may be wrong, of course, but up to this day Escudero has maintained a sepulchral silence on the matter and I do not recall him having made a single pronouncement on the issue," Barberan said.

He also laments what he said was Escudero’s apparent failure to visit the province when Mt. Bulusan was belching out tons of volcanic material and the province faced the threat of a major eruption. He said that as the acknowledged political leader of Sorsogon, more than the governor himself, it was hoped that Escudero would somehow visit the evacuation areas and at least express words of commiseration with the evacuees.

"If it turns out that he had come after all, my apologies. But while I learned that the province’s other congressman, Jose Solis, had showed up and gave assistance, it was frustrating that when I went home to the province last month, people we asked could not tell if he had visited any of the evacuation areas in Juban, Casiguran or Irosin," Barberan sighed.

"Does he now consider Sorsogon as a mere parochial concern that should be left to local officials while he concentrates on ‘more lofty issues’ of national import, such as impeachment?" asks the PR man whose disenchantment seems to run even deeper. He expressed consternation that Escudero seems to have devoted his entire time and attention to the task of ousting the incumbent Palace occupant.

Barberan adds: "It’s really amazing. Booting out the President seems to have become an obsession, almost a monomania, with Congressman Escudero, and I am concerned that he may be doing this at the expense of his legislative duties. They already failed last year and now they are at it again. Yet those who filed the impeachment charges admit that they do not have the numbers to succeed in their objective." Barberan has a point, as even Senate Minority Leader Nene Pimentel, another bitter critic of the administration, says that this second attempt is a futile and pointless exercise.

A Bicolano balikbayan from the US, Antonio Tibay of Magarao, Camarines Sur shares Barberan’s apprehension on the impeachment move. "Why do it again when they do not seem to have the slightest chance of success? I read that Rep. Peter Cayetano, one of those pushing mightily for impeachment, admits that they are not expecting to get the magic number of 79 signatures that will send the charges to a trial in the Senate. So what’s the point? Isn’t it a sheer waste of time and public money, considering that they should devote their effort passing needed laws, the task for which they were elected and are being paid?" Tibay asks.

The same sentiment was expressed by Ernesto A. Ramos, president of Makati Bicolanos, Inc., and of the Camarines Norte Association. A former marketing executive of an appliance manufacturing firm, Ramos fears that this new impeachment will again have a negative effect on the economy. "We seem to be doing okay. Inflation is down to 6.7 percent, the international reserves are at a record $21.15 billion and the peso went up to P52.35 to the dollar last Friday. So why don’t we stop this political circus and help instead in really cranking up the economy?" advises Ramos who said he is only speaking for himself and not for the two Bicol organizations that he heads.

At the moment, Escudero’s leadership is indeed, open to question. Already, there is agitation within the ranks of the opposition for his replacement as leader of the minority in the House.

Ramos also points out that a widely circulated tabloid that can hardly be called an administration mouthpiece has editorialized Escudero as a "paper tiger." On his part, Barberan claims to have no political affiliations and is not a member of any political group.

He said he is happy though, that both the solon and his father, former Agriculture Secretary Salvador Escudero, who was also a former Congressman of Sorsogon, have not been linked to any graft charges. He said Chiz Escudero could someday become president, or prime minister, assuming a shift to parliamentary government, but that the solon should learn the workings of realpolitik and reorient his political career towards a more positive direction. Perhaps he should even strike up some kind of working relationships with other Bicol leaders like Rep. Joey Salceda of Albay and Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya Jr. of Camarines Sur.

"Congressman Chiz should really think beyond Arroyo. His legislative record at present is not really that impressive. Up till now, I could not put a finger on any single, significant measure that he has authored or sponsored. The image that he projects is that of a one-dimensional politician whose single-minded mission is to drive Arroyo out of Malacañang and take over power for their group. It is possible though, that we may have also missed some of the things that he has been doing in Congress. But where is his vision of the future, of the Philippines? And where does Bicolandia fit in that vision?" Barberan asks.

* * *

My e-mail: [email protected]